The Power and Glory
by StarriChan
Summary: Kotone can't seem to get accustomed to her new Pokemon partner, Chikorita, and when faced with an offer she can't refuse, will she take it? Even if it means that harmless Pokemon would be put in harm's way?
1. Prologue

(AN: I use the Japanese names simply because I prefer them, so Lyra = Kotone, Ethan = Hibiki, etc. etc. etc.)

Prologue

Kotone has always been… A little strange when it came to Pokémon. Ever since I've known her, she's never been too excited about receiving her own Pokémon, and while I got my Marill when I was only 10 (Legally speaking, we had been friends prior), she preferred doing other things. Don't get me wrong, she was a great kid, happy go-lucky, but she never took to Pokémon. For the longest time, she'd only let me play tag with her if I left Marill at home, stomping and claiming that my Marill would just get in the way.

Now that we're older, you can say that she has changed a bit, while she's a caring person, I can't say that she's an _overall_ caring person. No matter what situation someone's in, she tries to help them, no matter what the cost to her would be. We're both 16 now, and she's finally gotten her first Pokémon, but she doesn't care for it like a partner would. I want to stay and help her learn how to take care of her new friend, but with my 17th birthday just around the corner, I can't be staying at home much longer. I'm going to start my journey across Johto soon, and hopefully Kotone will come with me. I've asked her several times, but she says the world isn't a safe place for children to be alone.

But we're not children anymore! One of the greatest Pokémon trainers beat up Team Rocket when he was several years younger than us, and even though Team Rocket was perhaps one of the more incompetent Teams of Pokémon history, they were still pretty scary. Trying to reason with Kotone, though, was like trying to chop down a Sudowoodo, you weren't going to get very far. Yet still, she's one of my dearest friends, and if she ever decides to start a Pokémon journey, I told her she can always travel with me. After all! A girl like her would want a nice tough guy like me to accompany her, right? H-hey! Right?

Either way, if there's anyone I would want to travel with, it would be Marill and Kotone, my two favorite girls.

( This is just a short little prologue, I'll be putting up the first chapter soon. The rest of the story is going to be told in 3rd person and revolve around Kotone. This is my first fanfic, so please, review and whatever the other thing is, if you have time!)


	2. And So It Goes

And so it goes…

A young teen girl sits at her desk, she had woken before the rest of the house and was finished getting ready. Her hair was flicked into two ponytails, the milk tea strands curled to stay pointed upwards. Her overalls were faded and worn, which was in stark contrast to the red sweater she wore under it. The only thing missing was her trusty hat, white with its red ribbon pinned securely near the brim, but she would be sure to put it on before leaving. For now, it hung on the corner of her chair.

Her pen was balanced between her index and middle finger, unsure of what to write on the letter. She had bought "Lovely Mail" at the Pokemart a few days prior, having made her decision. She didn't quite know what made her want to leave, but something did, and she decided to blame it on Fate. With a deep breath she set her pen tip down, and just began to write, hoping her mother would understand.

_Dear mom,_

_I know it's very sudden, but I have decided that it was time I left home. I'm already 16, and I think it's time for me to find my place in this world. Whether I become like Hibiki and train to be a Pokémon trainer, or I decide there's a completely different path for me, I want to know what's right. I will take Chikorita with me for protection, so you don't have to worry, and you always have my Pokegear number. I will try to visit every now and then, so please don't worry about me._

_ Your daughter,_

_ Kotone._

The girl, Kotone, took a moment to admire her work, and last minute decided a heart was due next to her name. She scribbled it down quickly before standing up, grabbed her hat, and tried her best to tip-toe down stairs. The house was quiet, meaning her mother was still asleep, hopefully having peaceful dreams. Approaching the table, Kotone gazed around the kitchen, there were no walls separating it from the living room, making the house small and modest. But Kotone never minded, she enjoyed the sense of security that came with living in a small house.

As quietly as she could, she made a pot of coffee, and poured it into her mother's favorite mug. Kotone couldn't even remember when her mother got the mug, so she assumed that it was before she was born. Kotone took the letter in both hands, said a little prayer, and placed it next to the cup of coffee on the table.

She was about to step out of the house, when she felt a pang, she was forgetting something. "Oh course…" she muttered under her breath, she had left her bag in her room. She couldn't leave without, her money and things were in it. She stealthily made it up the stairs once more without waking her mother, then entered her room to grab her bag. She let her eyes grazed the walls, floor, and counter spaces, making sure she didn't forget anything.

Her eyes fell on a stupid little Marill charm Hibiki had gotten her. Kotone hesitated for a moment, should she bring it? She could always put it on her Pokegear, and if she ever ran into Hibiki, she was sure it would make him happy. Maybe it would make him think she was starting to accept the whole Pokémon culture, which was highly unlikely, but it was better to have a happy Hibiki than a whiney one. She snatched it up, and began attaching it to her Pokegear. She had just finished when she heard a crash from downstairs.

Not even bothering to be quiet anymore Kotone rushed back into the kitchen, where her mother stood, looking tired and upset. "Mom…" Kotone whispered, not sure how she should react. Her mother just stepped over the spilled coffee and hugged her daughter as soon as she saw her. Her eyes were haggard and her hug felt weak. When she was finished, she looked down at Kotone with her lips pursed. "You should have just told me." She finally proclaimed, shaking her head, "Just get moving along, I have to clean up this mess."

Kotone was left in shock; she just wanted her to leave? Everything had happened too quickly, she was sure her mother would want to talk more, say some words of advice. Yet instead, there was coffee and shattered ceramic on the floor. Kotone looked back at her mother's face, which just seemed contorted in thought, her classic hairband keeping her hair out of her face. She hadn't even gotten a chance to change, and was still in her fluffy robe, her pajama pants peeking through the bottom.

Kotone couldn't handle it any longer, "Mom, I know that a letter probably wasn't the best way to tell you… But I have to learn how to be on my own!" she exclaimed, her grip tightening on the strap of her bag. Her mother slowly brought her head back up, to be at eye level with Kotone, letting out a small laugh, "So you're leaving on an adventure…? That's…. Okay, that's great, 'hun. But I'm a mother, and I want to help you…" The middle aged woman's face went from thoughtful to excited, and she shuffled over to the counter, "I know just the thing! I know you're a very responsible girl, Kotone, but maybe your mother can help you out just a little bit!" She began writing down some numbers, then showed her daughter, "See, I can help you save up money, that way you never have to worry about not having any!"

Once more, Kotone was in awe, her mother went from grave to an over-excited housewife in the matter of a few words. After getting over it, she smiled to herself and let her body relax, "Of course mom, I would love that." She replied, before giving her mother one last hug, "I'll send some money to you every now and then, and don't be afraid to use some of it if you want." Her mother drew her tighter, "Okay, now you go and show 'em, 'hun."

* * *

Annnnd, done. I hope it's okay... I don't have anything to do today, so I may update tonight before I go to bed. I hope you all enjoyed!


	3. Welcome to Cherrygrove

Welcome to Cherrygrove

Kotone could feel eyes on her as she made her way down the path. All around her was tall grass, and even taller trees. Despite the crisp morning air and the lack of people, the feeling of being watched followed her. Every once in a while she caught a break from the tall grass, but then, every once in a while, she was jumped by a wild Pokémon. But still, she wouldn't walk with her Chikorita. No matter how many ferocious Pidgeys and feral Ratata came in her path, she would only take Chikorita out when a battle was initiated.

The thing was so… Happy, despite always being locked away in its Pokeball, and it made Kotone feel uncomfortable, almost anxious, as she watched it. When they would win a battle it would run up to her, pushing through the tall grass and making calls of excitement. With a grimace on her face every time, Kotone would send it back into the Pokeball, she didn't want it to touch her. Who knew what would happen if she let it rub against her, it could bite! Or maybe it didn't know that move yet…

None-the-less, Kotone kept on trudging along. She kept wondering why she couldn't have been given a cuter Pokémon, she could somewhat stand those types. She might've even let it out to walk with her if it was a Meowth or something. With a sigh, she shoved Chikorita's ball into her bag. Shaking her head a little bit.

She had said she wanted to go out and find herself, but in a world where everyone was so infatuated with Pokémon, would she be able to _anywhere?_ "Why can't we just be focused around humans, instead of their stupid side-kicks…?" She muttered to herself, kicking a stone against a tree.

Kotone continued looking down, now that the tall grass was getting sparser and shorter. The farther along she went, the more definite the road got, until there was barely any tall grass and Cherrygrove City was in sight. Kotone had fond memories of Cherrygrove, ever since she was young she would visit there with Hibiki. They would go swimming, or Kotone would just play in the flowers. There was no gym in Cherrygrove, either, which meant there weren't many trainers, and that meant there was less Pokémon battles in and around the city.

Getting closer and closer to the city, Kotone got lost in her thoughts. What _was _the point of pointless battles? She could sort of understand battling as a form of entertainment for people, but why was it considered a plausible occupation when nothing would be accomplished from it? Sure, there was that one in a billion chance that you could become 'the very best'. But honestly, for all but one it will never happen.

A Pokémon doing something else, such as heavy lifting for its owner, or doing a chore seemed to make so much more sense to Kotone. Have the Pokémon do something for you, while you may take profit, instead of doing something and being left empty handed. "Hmm… If this Chikorita could do something cool, it could make up for its lack of… Cuteness." She whispered to herself. But then again, she could see it now, people confronting her, saying she wasn't treating her Pokémon 'right' because she didn't treat it like a human. Kotone almost laughed, 'treated like a human'.

Jolted out of her thoughts by a ringing, Kotone picked up her Pokegear, looking at the caller ID. She opened it up and spoke into it, "Hibiki?" The question being more rhetorical than anything.

"Hey, Kotone! What's up? Your mom called me, how come you didn't tell me you were starting your Pokémon journey, too? You know I wanted to travel with you!" His voice filtered through the speaker in the machine. Hearing the words 'Pokémon journey' Kotone cringed… "Now, Hibiki," she started, "You know how I feel about that… I'm not sure I'm going to become a trainer at all…"

"But Kotoneeeee—" She snapped the Pokegear shut with a grumble, she wanted to whine, but it would look weird if someone saw her complaining to herself. Hibiki was always trying to convince her that it might be good if she became a trainer, that she would learn 'the power of friendship with Pokémon!' or something like that. She would have been able to deal with it, but today she was tired and grumpy, and didn't feel much like trying to reason with him.

Ignoring the rest of his calls, Kotone finally walked into Cherrygrove, immediately there was a Pokémon Center to her right. Fishing through her bag, she pulled out Chikorita's ball, turning it over in her hand. She didn't like the thing, but it was still her responsibility. Walking into the Pokémon Center, a woman with pink hair greeted her with a cheerful smile, "Is there anything we can do for you or your Pokémon, today?" She asked. The woman was so happy—Joyful, even—that Kotone couldn't help but smile herself, "Sure, that would be great." She replied, handing the ball with Chikorita in it to the bubbly nurse. She told Kotone to have a seat, and that her Pokémon would be ready shortly.

The building looked clean wall to wall, not to mention very yellow. But it was a nice yellow, more of a gold than anything. Yet strangely, the red countertops didn't looks out of place at all. The only thing that did look strange, was the… Clone? Doppelganger? Perhaps twin of the nurse standing in front of an escalator. Not too sure what to make of it, Kotone simply walked past her.

Taking a seat by a window, Kotone coaxed a granola bar out the front pocket of her bag. Chewing on it, she began mulling over what she had to do that day and the next. Begrudgingly, she acknowledged that she _should_ train Chikorita. After all, if it wasn't strong, it would be useless. There was a beach nearby, and she remembered Prof. Elm telling her that grass types were strong against water types when he gave her the poke—Her Pokegear began ringing again, and she grumbled. She figured she may as well answer it to shut Hibiki up.

"Look look, Kotone, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have brought it up!" He pleaded as soon as she hit 'answer'. Kotone was pouting as she listened to Hibiki basically bargain his life if it would make it up to her. "It's not a big deal, Hibiki. Really, I swear." She replied, but she knew he wouldn't give up so easily. In fact, it only made him apologize more. "Just you wait! No one should make a girl upset, but trust me! I'll make it up as best I can… Now… I just gotta find out what… I'll call you when I find out!" Then she heard the familiar click of the connection being ended. "Really, Hibiki…" She muttered, being put right back into her grumpy mood. The doppelganger nurse approached Kotone, sensing her agitated mood.

"If you need a rest, we have room available to trainers for a minimal fee, in fact, this Center is so small compared to others, we're the cheapest!" She cheered, a smile plastered on her face, "Only 100 Pokedollars and you can come and go for the whole day!" the young nurse continued. Kotone was shocked for a moment, that was a pretty good deal, and it might just be what she needed to calm her nerves. "I'll take it!" Kotone stated as she got up and began stretching, "Just lead me to it."

…

The room was significantly different from the main lobby, Kotone could only guess the rooms were colour coded, as hers was only a shade lighter than the nurse's hair, and she was already in a better mood. The nurse said collected the money, then told Kotone to have a nice day. As soon as she was out the door, Kotone plopped down on the awfully generic bed, lying on her stomach. This wasn't too bad, she thought. Sitting up, she examined the rest of the room. There was a wooden desk and chair set that had a pad of paper and pen on it, a large mirror hanging above it. There was a small door, and Kotone guessed that it was either a closet or bathroom, she wasn't sure.

The pink walls relaxed her, reminding her of her room at home, while her walls weren't pink, nearly everything else was. Laying on her side, Kotone shoved her bag onto the floor, she began thinking about more than just the next few days. What would it be like in a few months? How about when she's seen all of Johto? Would she have found who she's meant to be? Whether it was in the next town, or the last one? With these thoughts circling her head, she began to drift into unconsciousness, letting sleep wash over her.

* * *

(The action should be starting soon ;D Don't you all worry.)


	4. Keep it in its Pokeball!

Keep it in it's Pokeball

_Suddenly the room was filled with Slowpokes, all looking at Kotone with the same stupid grin. She shuffled against the backboard of the Pokémon Center's bed, hugging her pillow to her chest. "B-be gone! Vile beasts!" She yelled, but the room was filling with more and more Slowpoke. The room was so filled, they began piling onto her bed, and she began screaming. She wouldn't admit it, but she had begun crying, too. One of them was getting too close to her foot, "Slow…. Poke?" It sounded off, and it turned around, its tail sliding over Kotone's foot…_

Kotone woke up gasping, her pillow was to her chest, just as it was in the dream. Running a hand through her hair, she furrowed her eyebrows. "One Slowpoke I can handle… But a hundred of those stupid Pokémon…!" She whispered to herself in disbelief. Slowpoke's were the dumbest, and the most useless, Pokémon in Kotone's opinion. She heard rumors of an even dumber Pokémon in a far off region, but she found it hard to believe. She had met her fair share of Slowpokes, and each and every one of them was dumb as a post.

While Kotone was gathering herself, she heard a knock on the door. After quickly checking the mirror and patting her hair down, she went to open the door. One of the nurses from earlier (she wasn't sure which) smiled at her as soon as the door was opened. "Ah, Miss, your Chikorita is all fixed up!" She cooed, a Pokeball appearing from her pocket. "It's getting late into the evening, but you have until tomorrow afternoon in this room. I hope you two enjoy your stay in Cherrygrove!" She bowed and closed the door. When Kotone was sure she couldn't hear her footsteps anymore, she threw the Pokeball on the bed with a sigh.

What was she supposed to do with it? Walking over to the bed, Kotone picked up the Pokeball once more, regretting that she threw it, but only a little bit. "Uhm… Come on out, Chikorita? I guess…" She muttered as she threw the ball up a ways. With a flash, Chikorita was before her, and immediately ran up to her. Putting her knee up instinctively, Kotone reprimanded the Pokémon, "No! You… Stay over there or something." Pointing to the area rug near the desk, Kotone motioned it to go over.

The Chikorita's glee did not falter, and it seemed to skip over to the rug, laying down. "Chika!" It called, nuzzling the ground. Kotone understood right away, the thing wanted food. Walking over to her bag, she pulled out a bag of Pokémon food, and poured it before the Chikorita. It went to lick her hand, as a sort of 'thank you', but Kotone snatched her hand away. She wasn't sure was she was so… Twitchy around the thing, she wasn't afraid of it, now that she learned that it didn't know 'bite'. She just ignored the nagging feeling and laid on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

…

When she woke up, the first thing Kotone noticed was the fact she had left the lights on. She didn't really mind, though, since it didn't interrupt her sleep. From the small window, which she hadn't noticed earlier, she could see it was early morning. She wiggled her body, stretching out so she could get out of bed.

Kicking her legs over the edge of the bed, she was looking at her stockings and overalls. "Don't tell me…" she started, she has slept in her clothes, so the first thing she did was bring her bag to her lap, and pulled out her second set of clothes. It was just a simple, sporty, outfit. When she saw it, it reminded her of those outfits the basketball players wore, and she thought it was adorable in its own respects. She changed into that outfit, and decided to leave her hat out of the ensemble. Next, she figured she should brush her hair and teeth.

Walking over to the desk, she saw the Chikorita sitting on the, looking up at her expectantly. "What do you what?" She asked it, then just sat down and began brushing her hair, then putting it into two pigtails. When she was finished, it was still looking at her, so Kotone stuck out her tongue to mock it. It was watching her so intently, it was weird. Even while brushing her teeth the thing followed her into the bathroom and watched her. It had gotten to the point, that when Kotone went back to her bag, the first thing she did was put the Chikorita in its Pokeball.

After getting that out of the way, Kotone tied her shoes and was out the door. But not before checking herself out in the mirror first, of course. On her way to the beach, Kotone couldn't help but feel a bit smug, she loved looking sporty, for some reason it made her feel more upbeat than usual. Not only that, but in the early morning, the City looked beautiful, which also helped to improve her mood. Where there wasn't a quaint little house, there were fields of flowers, and where there weren't fields of flower, you could expect to find a store, or if you went far enough, the beach!

As Kotone's shoes began treading the sand, she let Chikorita out of its Pokeball, "C'mon out." She beckoned it, she wanted Chikorita to get powerful, and fast. If the thing couldn't get strong enough, she figured she could try trading it for a stronger Pokémon. After all, the Professor did say something about it being a rare Pokémon, so people would be willing to trade, right? Regardless, Kotone continued trudging through the sand to the shoreline, she could already see a dumb Magikarp too close to the shore, "Chikorita! Razor leaf!"

…

By the time it was noon, Kotone was instructing Chikorita to move on from the pile of Magikarp that had accumulated on the shore line. She wasn't too worried about the pile, though, since she figured that high tide would carry it away. Kotone had to admit, she was pretty proud of herself, her Chikorita had learned a move that restores it's health, which seemed pretty powerful. But, none of the moves seemed to be too helpful in non-battle situations, yet. If it could learn something that could help her in an occupation of some sort, that would be ideal.

As if by cue, at exactly 12:30, Hibiki's name was blaring on the caller ID of her Pokegear. He kept going on and on about how something was "perfect", but it took a lot of coaxing for Kotone to get what was so perfect out of him. "Kotone, you're going to love this! I was traveling back through Azalea Town, and guess what they had posters up for? A festival! You can make it out in three days, right? Of course you can! There's a shop in town, so don't worry about a yukata or anything! I've got the festival attire covered!"

She didn't want to say anything, but Kotone was rather excited. She hadn't been to a festival since her dad was still… Home… She shook the thought from her mind, after all, festivals had games and fun, right? Maybe there would even be fireworks. So, with a contented sigh, "That sounds great, Hibiki, I can't wait!" And hearing the excitement in her voice, Hibiki got pumped, himself, "R-really? You would really like that? I'll make sure everything's a-okay! Meet me in Azalea Town in three days, okay!" After agreeing to several things, including what colour she wanted her yukata to be, the two hung up.

Looking at to the shoreline, Kotone called Chikorita back, and returned it to its Pokeball. They would have to start walking right away if they were going to make it to Azalea Town in time.

* * *

Ohohoho, what could be in store at the festival~ Perhaps a fateful encounter? Find out in the next chapter (or two ;D ) Also, don't forget to review!


	5. Azalea Town

Azalea Town

Having left Cherrygrove right away, Kotone managed to reach Violet City only an hour or two after nightfall. But, all that traveling in such a short time, not to mention the countless of both wild and trainer battles, exhausted her, and she was practically tumbling into the city. Luckily, the Pokémon Center was near the entrance to the city, similar to Cherrygrove. Before walking in, Kotone only had time to notice the unique scent of the town, then she was presented with the exact same sight she had seen before.

The same shade of yellow and red, and the exact same nurse at the counter. Kotone wasn't sure if it was the exhaustion getting to her, or if the Pokémon Center had a secret cloning chamber somewhere within its corridors. Shaking it off, she approached the counter, asking for a room and for her Chikorita to be healed. The nurse's bubble gum pink hair bounced as she drew her head back in surprise, then gave Kotone an apprehensive look. After a moment she gave Kotone the same bright smile the other nurses did, then told her that her Pokémon would be ready shortly.

Almost immediately after she walked away, another nurse showed up to lead Kotone to her room. Kotone barely paid any mind to the stark golden yellow and white hallways that lead her to her room. There were only a few rooms, and from one of them, she could hear a trainer talking to their Pokémon. She could feel her face contort as she thought, _"Really? He's talking to the thing like… It was a friend or something…"_ She just shook her head at the naivety of people.

When they arrived her room, Kotone promptly gave the nurse the fee for the room, and the nurse explained the same concept that the nurse back in Cherrygrove had. Kotone had a day in the room, and since she showed up at night this time, she would have to leave by nightfall the next day. Upon entering the room, it was exactly the same as the previous one, right down to the stationary on the desk. But Kotone could really care less how the room looked at this point. All she wanted to do was go to bed. But, she wasn't going to repeat the same mistake as last time. Throwing both that day's and yesterday's clothes in a hamper, she changed into the bed clothes she brought, which consisted of a cotton tank top and short set.

Throwing herself against the mound of pillows on the bed, Kotone pulled out her Pokegear, she was exhausted, but there was one thing she had to do. Opening up the map feature, Kotone planned out the next two days. She figured she could rest a bit in Violet City for a few hours, make a trip to the Pokemark, and she'd have to call Hibiki to let him know she was almost there.

With one hand on her Pokegear, and the other twirling the fabric on her white and red flowered pajamas, she figured the trip to Azalea Town would take a little under a day and a half, so she'd have to leave Violet city before noon. With a yawn, she figured that that much was all she really needed to know, and went to bed.

…

When Kotone awoke in the morning, first, she acknowledged it was about 6am, next, she was shocked to find a Bayleef in her room. She panicked for a moment in her newly awakened state, then she slowly realized, that it was her Chikorita… Well, it was evolved. Kotone had recalled her Pokémon so quickly, it must have started evolving inside it's ball instead of outside of it, as most Pokémon did. That fact wasn't going to change, either. Kotone picked up the ball that was left on her nightstand and called out, "Ch—Bayleef, return." Before setting the ball in her bag with a sigh. No wonder the nurse was giving her strange looks about her 'Chikorita' the previous night.

Kotone sat up in her bed for a moment, thinking about what to do. In the end she figured that ignoring the evolution would be best for now, after all, it was just the same Pokémon; it wasn't really a big deal. It just looked slightly less stupid.

…

Looking up at the clock in the Pokemart, Kotone saw it was about time she continued on the road. She jogged up to the counter, buying some snacks for the road, a few Pokeballs, and potions. After quickly organizing them in her bag, she was walking the road out of the town. A few people were giving her strange looks, after all, they assumed that since she stayed the night at the Pokémon Center, she would be challenging the gym leader before she left. After all, the town had its good share of trainers in it, all looking to fight him.

As if by cue, a little boy ran up to Kotone, "I need to practice before I go up against Falkner!" He said excitedly, almost a scream. Flashing him a 'great for you' look, Kotone kept walking toward the town's southern exit. "Hey! Hey lady! My Rattata is going to beat up Falkner's Pokémon! He's in the TOP percent of Rattata, I'm sure of it! To prove it to 'ya, I'm gonna battle 'ya!"

"Look kid…" Kotone sighed, not sure how to put the kid down lightly, "I'm not looking for a battle—"

"But aren't you a trainer!? We've gotsta battle!" He, rudely, interrupted her. He looked confused and in disbelief, that someone he didn't even know didn't want to battle him in the middle of a city. "Kid! Look around you, I don't think anyone will appreciate a battle right here!" She snapped at him, and then she recoiled, afraid she was too harsh. "What I mean is… If you ever see me out of town, I'll… Battle you then?" She said, not too sure of what she was saying. But the kid seemed pleased, he jumped around, chanting something about battling a 'real trainer', before running off, Kotone assumed to his mother.

…

Finally, after the past day, the Pokegear was indicating Kotone was only an hour from Azalea Town. She avoided most of the trainer battles, and managed to swiftly take down the wild Pokémon in her path. She was a bit disappointed, though, that there was none that she wanted to catch so far. But she figured that's just how it would be. At least it meant she would have plenty of Pokeballs.

As she walked the grassy path, she saw something move that wasn't supposed to move. Was it the grass? When she heard a voice floating over, she quickly ducked behind a tree. "God damnit, Lambda! Really, these clothes? I look like some sort of commoner…" The voice sounded disgruntled and distant, like he really didn't want to be where he was. Peaking from behind her tree, Kotone saw that what she saw was not grass, but rather a trainer, or at least he looked like one. He was shoving a brown hat hastily over his green hair, grumbling profanities under his breath. She heard him snap his Pokegear shut, "It could've have been black… But no, ugh, it's the colour of Pokémon sh—" He cut off, hearing a rustle, assuming it was god-knows-what, he continued on the path, glancing back every few paces, and Kotone stayed behind her tree, having now tucked her head back into hiding.

When she was sure he was far enough ahead, Kotone thought it would be interesting to follow him. Yet, it wasn't even a few steps forward when she heard a Pokémon call out from behind her. Turning around, Kotone laid eyes on a Mareep. Kotone automatically could tell it was an electric type, and had a moderately high level of cuteness. With a smirk, she decided the grumpy man could wait, and that she was going to catch a Pokémon.

After a half hour of trying to hit gently enough so that she didn't kill it, with a combination of trying to land enough damage that it could be easily caught, Kotone had gotten herself a Mareep. She pondered nicknaming it, but decided it would make the human Pokémon relationship too familiar, and she didn't like that thought at all. "Now," she began, "All that's left is reaching Azalea Town."

…

Hibiki was waiting anxiously at the Slowpoke well, he knew from Kotone's call earlier that she should've been there 45 minutes ago. Up until a few minutes ago, he was content just talking with his Marill until Kotone made her way to them. But now, he was kicking the ground nervously, "Maybe we should go in, Marill… She could've gotten hurt! After all, she is a girl, I need to go rescue her!" He cried out eventually, clenching his fist dramatically while raising it. The Marill joined in with his melodramatic behavior with a call and a spin.

Seeing another trainer walk by, Hibiki couldn't help himself, "Hey! You, with the hat!" He called out, and as the hat-guy turned around, Hibiki became nervous. Hat-guy seemed royally pissed off, but Hibiki just swallowed and approached him, "Have you seen a girl, just about thiiiis tall," He brought his hand up to a few inches lower than the top of his head, "She was probably wearing a fluffy white hat? Red bow?"

The guy was about to ignore Hibiki, but then paused, seemingly lost in thought. He thought it might've just been a Pokémon, or part of the tree, but was that white thing he saw sticking out behind the tree… He threw his hands up, even if it was, he wasn't going to be helping a complete stranger. "Dunno, you're on your own." He said, the arrogance dripping from his tone, leaving Hibiki in shock. Never had Hibiki experienced a person like this, sure, he had seen arrogance, but this guy was a whole new level. "W-well, thanks for nothing!" He tried to retaliate, but the hat-guy just raised his hand, Hibiki half-expected him to wave, but hat-guy just returned the hand to his belt. "Psshh… I could've taken him…" Was all Hibiki mumbled, before turning around to make his way into the tall grass, his Marill right behind him.

He didn't have to walk far, for soon he saw a familiar face walking towards him, and he beamed, "Kotone! Hey! Over here, me and Marill have been waiting for you!" He called out, running towards her. "Heya." Was all she said in response, a smile playing on her lips. "Come on, the Pokémon center is right ahead, I made sure they saved you a room next to mine, oh! And the festival is tomorrow! You made good time!" he said, relaying the game plan for the next day, and what Kotone could do until then. He suggested a lot of options that involved the two of them hanging out. Putting a twist on his almost-catch-phrase she brought a hand to her face, "Well, after all, I am a girl… I'm going to need a lot of time to get ready…!" She joked with him, bringing her hand down to give him a small punch on the arm, not that she could do much damage anyways.

As the two walked into town, they began catching each other up on the past year. Kotone forgot how non-irritating she found Hibiki in person, she boiled it down to how his voice sounded over Pokegear: Whiney and childish. But seeing him in person, Kotone could tell he was well on his way towards being an adult, granted he would be a childish adult, but an adult none-the-less.

"This, Kotone, is the grand Pokémon center of Azalea Town!" He cooed, shuffling her inside the building. Kotone was expecting something different from the past two she was in, but it was exactly the same. The nurses again, too. "Hey, Hibiki, I've been meaning to ask. What's up with the nurses? Are they robots or something?" She whispered to him, afraid they might hear her and apprehend her for voicing their secret, or something. Instead of a shocked gasp, she got a chuckle out of Hibiki, "Of course not! They're cousins! The hair, face, body, and… Well, everything runs in the family, along with naming the daughters 'Joy'. I guess it's just their thing."

Shaking her head lightly, Kotone just shrugged, letting out an exhausted, "Oh." Just as she said it, one of the nurse Joys came up to her, "You must be Kotone! We have your room all ready, we'll take care of your Pokémon for you." She said, and Kotone passed the two Pokeballs onto the woman before she led her to her room, Hibiki following right behind them. When they arrived at the designated door, Kotone reached into her bag to pull out of the money for the room before she was interrupted by Hibiki, "Hey hey! I told you I'd make up to you for earlier, I paid already." Kotone's jaw dropped a little. She had agreed to allow Hibiki to buy her a yukata, but the room too? She felt a little guilty, after all, how much could someone make off of beating up other's Pokémon? As if he read her thoughts Hibiki patted her on the shoulder before saying, "You know, being a trainer pays better than you think." He then winked at her and went into his own room, his Marill marching behind him like a little soldier.

With a sigh, Kotone entered her room, "He's really such a child…" She muttered, throwing her bag on the floor and walking over to the bed. It was later in the afternoon, so Kotone figured she could take a nap before dinner. All this walking and traveling was really getting to her, her legs were sore and her eyes felt heavy.

* * *

Woooo, long chapter! But finally! Some character interaction! What do you all think is going to happen ;D ? Don't forget to review!


	6. The Festival

Sorry about the delay, guys! A bunch of stuff happened the past few weeks, from school, to health, etc. I was going to update this Friday, but once again fate intervened and I couldn't get it up till today. Either way, school ends in full in a few days, so I'll be updating much more frequently!

* * *

The Festival

Staring at her reflection in the mirror, Kotone sighed to herself. The yukata for the festival had put her off at first, the red on white pattern being a bit too bright for a young girl her age. Yet, she had grown accustomed to it as the nurse helped her put it on earlier, the bright colors making her look a little less tired than she had prior. But now, she had to deal with her hair. She had already decided to keep it in her signature pig-tails, but she wasn't sure what to do with the rest of it.

Before her she had an array of hair ornaments and kanzashi, all that Hibiki had dropped off cooing something about how 'cute' they would look on her. In all reality, though, she had no idea what to do with them. As if her thoughts had been read, there was a knock on the door, and when she opened it, it was one of the nurses again. The pink haired woman greeted her and asked how she was doing. Kotone couldn't help herself, and ended up asking for help with her hair. It was such a stupid thing to be worried about, she couldn't help but trip over her words as she asked.

The nurse did not seem to mind at all, though, but instead giggled in anticipation. "You know," She began, as she sat Kotone down and looked over all the hair ornaments, "because of my job, I can't go to the festival tonight. But, to make up for my absence, I'll make sure you're the prettiest girl there."

Those words came as a bit of a shock to Kotone. This very well might have been their first time speaking, yet the woman was so eager to help her. She couldn't make out if the nurse was naïve, or just a bit dense. She expected her helping, perhaps even wanting to help, yet those words wouldn't stop ringing through her head. Instead she just muttered a "Thank you." And proceeded to twiddle her fingers as the nurse went to work on her hair.

The half hour seemed more like an eternity, but when the nurse was finally finished Kotone couldn't help but stare in amazement. There were very few ornaments used, but it looked balanced, "And, for the finishing touch…." The nurse lifted a very simple kanazashi off the table, composed of one large red flower with two strands of white and red 'petals' hanging down. "There, perfect." She smiled, and seeing that Kotone was pleased, excused herself from the room.

Within the next few moments she had slipped on her geta sandals and rushed out the door, well, as quickly as she could in the sandals. She hadn't worn anything like them since she was younger and it would take a bit of getting used to. Knocking on Hibiki's door, she heard a muffled, "Almost ready!" and leaned against the wall. Adjusting her hair slightly, she began thinking about the past day. She wondered if she was a bit more pessimistic when she was left alone in her thoughts, but she just waved it away, blaming her prior mood on the lack of human interaction or something. Her excuses were interrupted by Hibiki opening his door, and stepping out into the hallway with Kotone, "You ready?" He cooed, his hatless head cocking to the side like a little kid.

…

With a sideways glance, Kotone observed Hibiki as they approached the stalls of the festival. The dark bluish-black of his yukata was nearly the same shade of his hair, and made him look much older than he did in the morning, when he was wearing his regular day clothes. Making eye contact, Hibiki winked, "Can't resist my dashing good lo—Ow!" He cut off when Kotone's sandal 'accidently' came down on his foot. "Oh my, I seem to still be getting used to these shoes…" She muttered before nudging her friend's arm.

The two of them wandered around the festival, hoping to at least look at all the stalls before it got too busy. At the moment, there were only a few other people wandering around, from what the locals had told them, most the crowd waits until nightfall to head over for the evening festivities. The area the festival was contained in was pretty big, and Kotone had begun to wonder just how many people would show up.

Approaching a game stall, involving some exceptionally small Goldeen and paper scoops, Kotone opted to just stand back and watch as Hibiki attempted to nab one of the Pokémon without breaking the scoop. Letting her eyes wander around as Hibiki got absorbed in the game, Kotone's eye was caught by a pink mask riding high above the others, mostly worn by children. It was the silly face of a Slowpoke, and it made Kotone wonder what kind of teen or adult would subject themselves to such a fate.

As the face turned more towards her, she saw a glare that rang a bell. As she tried to put her finger on it, the stranger redirected their observing glare directly at her. She was flustered for a moment, locked up and unable to look away, but as soon as she realized it was the angry-boy from earlier, she redirected her attention to Hibiki, who had a Goldeen on the scoop, and was slowly making its way towards his container.

"I did it!" She heard him call out, lifting up the Goldeen in the clear container for everyone to see. "Great job, youngin'! The Goldeen is yours to keep, now." Hibiki's smile turned more into a pensive look, then he looked straight at Kotone, "Hey, do you want it?" He asked, presenting the Goldeen to her like a used car salesman. The thing looked puny and weak, even if it evolved it wouldn't serve much use, so she shook her head no, and declined as politely as she could.

With a small frown, Hibiki gave the stall-keeper an apologetic glance before returning the Goldeen to the water. "S-so, what do you want to do, now?" He asked, resuming his expectant expression. Considering it was still rather desolate, Kotone figured that they should get food while they still could.

…

Kotone had immediately regretted her decision. With so much food already available (and more stalls setting up) at such cheap prices, it wasn't long before she had tried more than half of the food present at the festival. The few times Hibiki tried to make a pass at her appetite, she made sure to shoot him down as quickly as possible. If anything, she justified all the food she was eating with the fact that she had been walking non-stop for the past few days.

She was just about to get started on some dango when she noticed there was no comment about how much weight she was going to gain. Looking around, she noticed that Hibiki was gone and the crowd was beginning to set in. Looking at her dango, and then back at her surroundings, she figured she could still munch on it while looking for her missing persons.

Figuring he might have been distracted by a game, she began making her way to the busiest looking game stall, where people were trying to get as many small balls out of a tank of water as possible. Yet she couldn't find her dark haired friend anywhere within the crowd. Attempting to take a bite of her snack as she turned around, someone was pushed into her. The body before her prevented her from extending her hands to catch her dango, that were now laying on the ground, a considerable amount of dirt on them.

Now that her snack was a lost cause, she looked up at the stranger, but was greeted instead by a stupid-looking slowpoke face. She let out a little scream, caught off guard, before the slowpoke 'face' turned away and she was presented with a face that perhaps even scarier. Because of the dark, almost black, appearance of the figure's yukata it blended in with the surroundings, and ended up looking something like a floating head at first. The scornful expression was framed by green hair that contrasted the pink mask with startling vibrancy. Despite the fact that her delicious snack was just knocked out of her hand, she had to bring up her hand to prevent herself from laughing at the angry-boy.

His glare turning more into a stare of horror he looked down on Kotone, "And what are you laughing at?" He asked, his voice grumbling a bit. Kotone had to press her hand harder against her mouth, his voice adding to the comedic affect. Without the mask, earlier, he looked like someone to fear. But with the simple addition of a slowpoke face he became more of a spectacle. Composing herself a bit, Kotone removed her hand from her mouth. "U-uhm it's nothing, I was just… Thinking of… Pffft—" She couldn't help it, and she just broke out laughing, for as the green-haired boy's face twitched in anger, so did his mask.

"Are you condescending me!?" He raised his voice, clearly enraged by Kotone's little laughing fit, "I'll let you know, I could very easily make you regret making fun of me!" His voice was harsher now that he was angrier. "N-no not at all it's just," Kotone gasped for air, "it's the mask! T-the mask!" She declared, letting more laughs escape between words.

The boy adjusted his mask, a defiant look in his eye. He wouldn't admit it, but he rather liked his mask, he thought it was dumb enough to look cool. "And what makes you say that?" He questioned, his voice daring her to try and say something about his mask again.

Letting herself breath, Kotone looked up at him, a stupid grin on her face, making sure to avoid eye contact with the mask. "Well, you see…" She began, letting out a puff of air, "Take a moment to think about yourself, you're rather tall," She raised her hand up high to exemplify her point, "you have quite a scary face, no offence intended, I think some girls are into that." She explained, backpedaling a bit to avoid conflict. "But then, there's just that… Thing," She choked, "on your head…" And as if to drive home the point that he didn't really care, he pulled the mask over his face, staring down onto Kotone.

She didn't know whether to laugh or cry, the whole situation was rather stupid, and she was blatantly shocked. "I didn't do this to entertain you, Kiddo." His voice wafted through the mask as he pointed ahead of him, behind Kotone. Turning around, she saw Hibiki, wading through the crowd of people, a package in his hands. "Oi! Kotone!" He called out, waving to her. She turned around to invite the angry boy to hang out with them, but he was gone, lost in the crowd, she supposed.

…

Having promptly grabbed Kotone's hand, Hibiki began leading her away from the crowd, claiming that he had a surprise for her. Kotone felt like asking where the hell he exactly was, but she figured it was futile, he must have thought whatever he did was a 'super good idea' or something along those lines, thus, it wouldn't matter. Well, to him at least.

Now that they were out of the main crowd, Hibiki had let out his Marill to walk alongside them. As usual she followed her owner with a confident stride and without falter. It was actually getting on Kotone's nerves, just a little bit.

She wasn't quite sure when she had gotten him to release his grasp on her hand, but she managed it and followed behind him, instead of hand-in-hand. "Can't you at least tell me where we're going?" She asked, her voice growing weary from how late it had become. Hibiki muttered something about ending a festival the 'right' way, and continued on his way.

As the noise from the festival began to fade into the distance, Kotone thought she knew where they were going, and if she guessed right, it would be the Slowpoke well. That's when she began eying the little brown bag in his hand, wondering what he could have planned. It wasn't long until she found out, the pathway to the well before them now.

With a quick jog, they were down to the entrance of the well, and Hibiki held out the brown bag in front of him, "Behind bag number one…" He announced in a booming TV-personality voice, "Taaa-DA!" He pulled out a package of sparklers, and Kotone's face light up. "No way!" She cawed, leaning forward to get a better look at the packaging. Her mother had never let her play with them before, and she thought she would die without knowing what it was like to play with a sparkler.

Hibiki pulled one out of the package, handing it to her. He pulled out another, showing it to his Marill, before reaching into the folds of his yukata, where he had hidden a lighter. "I would have used a fire type," he proclaimed sheepishly, "but I don't quite have one in my repertoire, yet." He rested the package on the lip of the well, and then brought the lighter to his sparkler. Kotone's mouth formed an 'o' as it was light, she had never seen one up close. She held hers up childishly, and sensing her impatience, Hibiki brought his sparkler to hers, and hers burst up with sparks as well.

Despite being nearly an adult now, she was a bit scared when the sparkler first started burning, thinking that her hair might catch on fire. But as it died down a little bit, she got a bit more confident and began walking around the well with it, spinning it around and forming little circles. Feeling something poke into her hip, she looked down just in time to see the package of sparklers fall down into the well. She looked up to meet Hibiki's horrified, overdramatic reaction to the ordeal, which involved a bit of flailing, then the realization that there wasn't much he could do at this point.

Kotone hesitated for a moment, she felt bad that she lost the package, mostly because Hibiki spent money on it, but what could she do… "I know," She glanced over to her friend, a triumphant look in her eyes, "I'll go down and get it!" She announced, proud of her decision. "But Kotone, it could be dangerous! Especially since you're a girl!" Hibiki retaliated, "I'm coming with y—Hey! Wait up!" Kotone was already starting her descent down the well as he ran over, retrieving his Marill as he did so.

With a thump, they both stepped down from the latter, entering the cavern within the well. "You go check over there and I'll see if it fell down the ridge over here." Kotone announced upon not finding the package immediately near the base. Her friend nodded, knowing that was better than anything he could come up with.

"Now now… Let's see." She mumbled, peeking over the ridge, "This is a bit high up… If it did fall down—" As if she jinxed herself, her geta caught on a stone, causing her to topple over the side. She hit the ground on her side, a slight pain running up her arm, and her white yukata getting awfully dirty. Luckily, it wasn't too high, and she managed to get away with nothing more than a bruise or two. She stood up, brushing off as much dirt as she could, when something caught her eye. Walking over to it, she realized it was the package, "Awesome! Now I just gotta make my way back to Hibiki before he starts to worry."

Rounding a corner in the direction she thought was correct, she saw a pink object moving around in the darkness. Upon walking closer, she could make out that it was a mask, and the green tufts of hair poking from under it. The angry boy had brought the mask off from directly on his face since last Kotone saw him, and his hateful expression was replaced with a look of determination and thought.

Since she was passing by him anyways, Kotone called out to him, "Hey, what are you doing here?" His whole body went rigid, and then relaxed almost as quickly. He turned his head, his eyes boring into Kotone, "…Research."


End file.
